


The Dreaded C Word

by SapphirePearl1718



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Cancer, Chronic Illness, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hawaii Five-0 2010 Season 9, M/M, Surgery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-11
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:41:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 18,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26404405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SapphirePearl1718/pseuds/SapphirePearl1718
Summary: Everything in life has been going along fine for Danny Williams.  Recently, he is been feeling under the weather and goes to the Doctor after some prodding from Steve.  He is shocked to discover the results and struggles to cope.
Relationships: Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams
Comments: 23
Kudos: 163





	1. Unwell

**Author's Note:**

> I have several stories in the works. I am excited to get them done and share them with all of you. In the meantime, this little story came to mind. It is in memory and honor of those who is fighting, has won or lost their battle against cancer. There may be some tears, I know I shed some while writing this story.
> 
> Hope you enjoy and please leave comments, questions and kudos. :)

Danny Williams woke up from a fitful sleep in order to sit up and cough. The fit lasted a few minutes, which left him feeling thirsty. The cough sounds wet, harsh and painful even in his own ears. He did notice that it was still dark outside so it had to be early morning.

The bed behind him shifted as he leaned over to finish his coughing fit. He heard a groan and a thud as an item was dropped onto the night stand. A moment later, a strong warm hand rubbed his back.

"Hey, baby, you ok?" His partner and lover, Steve McGarrett asked. "This is the tenth time in the last few weeks you woke up coughing." 

Danny nodded as he picked up the water bottle on his nightstand and gulped some water down now that the fit has passed.

"Yeah, Steve, I'm fine." He tried to reassure the ex-SEAL.

Steve didn't seem convinced. "You've been coughing off and on for a couple of months now. I noticed yesterday when we went to question that witness that you seemed out of breath just from walking up some stairs."

The Detective grimaced but didn't deny anything. He has been feeling under the weather recently but he's been ignoring it, putting it down to difficult cases. Now, he wasn't so sure that this is the main reason. He knows he isn't as young as he used to be now that he is in his mid 40s. However, the last three years have been nice once he and Steve stopped dancing around the love they have for each other.

"I'm concerned. I think you should go see the doc." Steve said quietly. He felt lips kissing his shoulder and strong arms wrapping around his middle. 

"I'm fine, Steve." He turned his head slightly to look at his partner. The hazel eyes watched him, filled with worry. He sighed and nodded. "Fine. I'll go see our Doctor if that will make you feel better." He received another kiss for that.

"Thanks, Danno." He was pulled back down to the mattress, arms still wrapped around him. "Go to sleep.” Steve commanded. 

Letting out a sigh, Danny closed his eyes to try and get some more sleep before the sun rose.

~S~

By early afternoon, Danny finally managed to take a moment and make an appointment with his doctor. Stifling a yawn, he asked when the earliest appointment was available. There was one the next morning at eight. He agreed and hung up. He went to Steve's office to tell him he had made one.

The rest of the day went by relatively uneventful. He had a few more coughing fits, but he ignored them. They went home and had dinner, but he wasn’t very hungry. They relaxed and watched the ocean while commenting on their current case. He went to bed early that night.

The next morning, Danny and Steve head over to the Doctor. It doesn't take them long to get called back and he explains to Doctor Reginald McKinley how he has been feeling and the coughing fits, ignoring Steve’s alarmed face when he revealed the truth.

McKinley nodded after writing his notes. “Ok, take off your shirt and let me have a listen to those lungs and heart.” Danny unbuttoned his shirt and let it slide off onto the table he was sitting on. The stethoscope was cold against his skin and he had to force himself not to jerk away. 

After a minute, the Doctor straightened and picked up Danny’s file again. “Hmmm, your right lung sounds off. I’m going to have you do some x rays and a blood test to start. Then we’ll go from there.”

Danny reluctantly agreed and the Doctor left to get the tests started. He sighed and looked at Steve who had moved to his side. “I guess it’s nothing, huh?”

Steve ran a hand through his hair before placing a small kiss. “Maybe it’s just pneumonia. Remember you fell into that cold water at that freezing factory a few months ago.”

“Oh, yeah. I suppose you could be right.” Danny pondered, trying to keep his anxiety in check.

“Just relax. These are merely routine checks.” Steve said with a smile.

Before Danny could respond, the door opened and the phlebotomist came in to do his blood work.


	2. Say That Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reminder: Anything medical related I am not an expert. I am using the knowledge from people I have known that had cancer. I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Please leave any comments, questions and kudos. On with the chapter!

The tests are done fairly quickly and McKinley tells them to go ahead and leave. He’ll call once he has the information back from the tests.

They leave and arrive at work about an hour late. Tani Rey smiles at them as they enter and elbows Junior Reigns in the side. “Morning, Bosses. I was wondering what was keeping you. Maybe a romantic morning?” She asked mischievously. 

Danny glared at her. “I swear, Steven, it’s like Kono never left.”

Steve laughed as he headed into his office. Junior had a smirk but didn’t add to the comments. “Joking aside, everything ok, Sir?”

The Detective quietly sighed at the term “Sir”. It was a habit that they couldn’t seem to break with Junior. “Yes, everything is fine, just had something personal to do this morning.”

Tani opened her mouth to speak, presumably to ask what it was they had done this morning, when Steve bursts out of his office and announces a new case.

The rest of the morning and early afternoon is taken up by the case which has them running around. Steve and Danny were headed back to headquarters when Danny’s phone rang. He glanced at it and felt a nervous twitch in his stomach when he saw the number. He answered it and placed it on speaker.

“Hey, Doc, what’s up?”

“Afternoon, Detective, so I just went over your tests this morning and I have some news.”

Danny glanced at Steve nervously and saw the same expression on his partner’s face. “Ok, what is it?”

“Well, I had the lab run your blood several times to be sure and looking at x rays, I suspect you have something more than just an infection.” McKinley sounded concerned.

“What do you think it is?” Danny asked and he reached over to grab Steve’s hand. He was starting to feel anxious.

“I don’t want you to freak out. I would like to run some more advanced tests to be sure, but I suspect it could be lung cancer.”

A shocked silence follows and Danny has to blink a few times in order to process what he just heard. “Say that again?” His voice sounded strangled.

“I suspect lung cancer. X rays show a large mass on your right lung and blood work shows high levels of white blood cells. I am having them check for cancer cells on your blood. I have already ordered a CAT scan and an MRI. Both scheduled for tomorrow morning at 9:00. Should have the results within 48 hours.”

Danny is staring at the phone in shock. His mind is racing and he isn’t sure what to do or say. Fortunately, Steve comes to his rescue and confirms the appointment with the location. Then he hangs up.

They reach the Palace and park the car. Neither one makes a move to leave the car. Eventually, Steve breaks the silence. “Look, he could be wrong. He did say he suspected, which means he isn’t positive.”

“Yeah...but what’s the probability that he is wrong?” Danny asks quietly. For once, his hands are motionless as he stares at them. Steve reaches over and tenderly lifts Danny’s head up. 

“Hey, no point in freaking out right now. We’ll go get the tests done and see what happens. Everything will be fine.” Steve tried to reassure him. He slowly nodded, not trusting his voice yet.

Steve nodded and finally turned off the car. “Come on, we have a case to work.” Then he got out. Danny took a few more moments to steady himself before he too got out and followed his partner into the building.

~S~

The next morning, they found themselves back at the Doctor’s office getting the more advanced tests done. Several vials of blood were drawn this time along with a full physical work up. When asked to take a deep breath, a coughing fit takes over. McKinley has a very concerned expression when Danny finally stops. He makes a few notes in the file.

It takes the rest of the morning to do the two scans and by then, Danny is exhausted. Steve decides to take him home after they are done. McKinley tells them that he will know for sure what he was looking at within 48 hours.

Once home, Danny changes into his night clothes and climbs into bed. He’s feeling very tired all of a sudden and he curls up under the covers. Steve brings several bottles of water and places them on the nightstand. He kisses Danny and smooths the blonde hair back out of his face. 

“I love you. Get some rest and I’ll be home by dinner.” Steve smiled gently at him and then he left. Danny was more than happy to go to sleep. 

Steve comes home early that night and they eat dinner. Danny has another coughing fit while they are relaxing on the couch and gets caught up on the case. After that, they go to bed and hope for a better day.

The next couple of days keeps them busy with the case. Running down leads, gathering evidence and at some point, end up in a shoot out with a suspect. Danny yells and curses at his partner for being so stupid when the ex-SEAL decides to crash through the skylight to surprise the suspect. It’s right after lunch that they are wrapping up the case.

Danny is writing his report when his phone rings. He immediately rushes over to Steve’s office when he sees it’s the Doctor. He puts it on speaker before Steve can ask what is going on. “Hello, Doc. What’s the news?”

“Hello, Detective. Are you doing alright today?” 

He sighed and sat on Steve’s lap, unashamedly. Steve for once doesn’t argue, sensing that Danny is needing the support.

“I’m fine. The tests, Doc?” He said impatiently.

“Of course. I have carefully looked over everything and even asked a colleague to confirm my suspicions. I’m sorry, Danny, but it is lung cancer. Possibly stage two, which is very good news. We seem to have caught it in plenty of time. I’m sending you a list of Doctors for you to choose from for treatment.”

Danny just sat there, stunned. There was a roaring in his ears and he could feel his heart pounding. ‘No, this can’t be happening.’

Steve takes over and asks, “What caused it? Do you think it was something to do with his job?”

“Maybe. Your file does indicate a sarin exposure back in 2010. That could be related but I can't be sure. That’s not my field of expertise.” 

Danny is vaguely aware of Steve finishing the conversation and hanging up. He blinks slowly before he feels tears well up in his eyes. This could not be happening. “Steve, please tell me I’m stuck in a nightmare.”

Steve sighed and hugged him close, tucking his head into his shoulder. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, I wish it was.” He gave Danny a kiss. “It’ll be ok. We’ll get through this.”

He nodded as he felt the tears fall and he can’t help but sob into his chest. Danny had always thought that Steve would be the one to get cancer after that dirty bomb a couple of years ago. But it was him that had cancer, not Steve.

They sat there in Steve’s office with Danny curled in his lap for a long while. Neither acknowledged the breakdown that Danny was currently going through. In the end, Danny calmed down and fell asleep in Steve’s arms.


	3. The Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all enjoy the chapter.
> 
> Please leave any comments, questions and kudos. :)

They decide to keep this information to themselves for the time being. They wanted to talk to the oncologist that they were going to see in a couple of days. They spent the next day researching on the list of names that was sent to them by McKinley. They decide to go with a woman named Doctor Elizabeth Taylor. 

Danny tells Steve to go to work, but he said he needed the rest of the week off to wrap his head around the situation. Steve agrees and promises to not tell the team. The Detective spends his day doing some more research on treatment and the cancer itself. He has more questions than answers by the time dinner rolls around.

Steve returns home with take out, but neither one eats much because they are too stressed for much of an appetite. They go to bed early where they toss and turn until it is finally time to go to the appointment. 

As soon as they arrive, Danny is taken to get more tests done. He drinks down some barium before he has a PET scan done. Followed by x-ray, MRI and another CAT scan. More blood is drawn for tests as well as a urine sample. It takes him the rest of the morning for the tests and then he is told to go have lunch before returning this afternoon to discuss the plan.

Fortunately, Kamekona’s shrimp truck isn’t far and they decide to eat there for lunch. The fresh air and casual atmosphere relaxed them as they ate. The large man tried to guess what they were doing without the rest of the team, but they told him it was personal and left it at that.

Mid afternoon, they head back and meet up with Doctor Taylor in her office. There she shows the results of all the different scans as well as the blood work results. By the end, Danny feels tears welling up again.

Steve wraps an arm around him before addressing the Doctor. “So, what are our options?”

She nods as she opens a file on her desk. “Well, the good news is it is only stage two. It’s very treatable and manageable at this stage. I want to prescribe some radiation pills paired with chemotherapy. Maybe some surgery in the future, but we’ll come back to that when we cross that bridge.”

“How many times a week for treatment?” Steve asked.

“We’ll start with once a week and go from there. I am also prescribing some medication to help with the coughing and some low dose pain medication to start.” She paused and folded her hands on the desk. “Detective Williams, do you have anything to say?”

Danny shook his head, not trusting his voice just yet. He’s pretty certain that if he tried to speak now, he would end up either yelling or screaming.

“Ok. Just remember, my team and I are here to help you get better and if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call.” She grabbed a small pad, wrote some things down on it before ripping it off and sliding it across the desk. “Here are the prescriptions. I suggest you get these filled as soon as possible.” Steve took them since Danny seemed frozen in his chair. “Now, the last thing we need to do is set up your first chemo appointment.”

They agree to start that Monday, that way it gave them the weekend to talk to everyone before it starts. She is very understanding and smiles as they get up to leave. Danny finally breaks his silence and looks at her. “Doctor Taylor, what do you think about work and side effects of chemo?”

“Excellent questions. I think work is fine but only do very light work. With treatment, you will most likely not feel up to doing much. As for side effects…” She reaches into a drawer and pulls out a pamphlet. “This has the most common side effects.” She hands it over and Danny sighs.

“Ok. Thank you.” Then he leaves the office, Steve right behind him.

They get into the car and Steve turns it on. Danny sits there in a daze and he’s barely aware of Steve reaching over and putting his seat belt on for him.

“Hey,” The ex-SEAL waits until Danny is looking at him. “It’s going to be ok. You’ll have lots of support.”

Danny nodded and patted his hand. “I know. Especially with you here. I guess I won’t be in the field for a while.”

Steve shook his head as he pulled out of the parking lot. “No, baby, you won’t but that’s ok. We have plenty of paperwork that needs to be done.” He gives a small laugh before sobering. “But seriously, Danny, I think we should do a bbq this weekend and tell everyone.”

The blonde shook his head. “No, I don’t want them to worry.”

The ex-SEAL raised an eyebrow at that. “They are going to find out anyway, especially when you lose your hair and rarely leave the office.”

Danny lets out a defeated sigh. “Yeah...I guess you are right.” He looks out of the window and the scenery that is flashing past. A thought suddenly occurs to him and he groans. “Damn it. I need to tell the kids and Rachel.”

Steve winces. “Yeah, you do. When do you want to do that?”

He thinks about it for a minute. “As soon as possible without the ohana. I’ll meet up with Rachel tomorrow and maybe tell them tomorrow night.”

“You should video call Grace. She has made some good friends at college, so she will have some support there.”

“That’s a good idea. I can tell Eric tomorrow too. I’ll call the rest of the family the day after tomorrow.” Danny suddenly feels tired at everything he needs to do for the rest of the week.

Steve’s hand grasps his hand in a comforting gesture. “Hey, don’t stress too much. Everyone will know in due time. You just worry about telling the kids and getting better. I’ll handle everything else.”

Danny nodded and closed his eyes. He never imagined he would be the one faced with such an illness. He always prided himself on rarely getting sick. Then he remembers hearing from one of his great aunts when he was a teen telling him that cancer doesn't discriminate. It could attack anyone no matter age, health, or skin color. 

He felt nauseous, but it wasn’t due to the cancer. He already felt so tired and he hadn’t even begun his fight yet. He was starting to understand those who have had cancer and why they just want it to end when it became terminal. He swallowed and hoped with all of his being that he won’t end up with that fate.


	4. Delivering The News

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Danny tell the Ohana what has been going on. Some cuddles and fluff involved.
> 
> This is a longer chapter. I hope you enjoy the feels through the chapter. Hope you enjoy!

The next day, Danny drives himself over to Rachel’s while Steve is at work. They are wrapping up a major case and Danny wanted his SEAL to get everything on his end done before he came home that evening.

He knocked on the door and it was jerked open a minute later. Rachel eyed him and huffed. “You know, it would have been nice if you had given me a heads up before coming over. That’s what people in civilization do.”

A spark of annoyance runs through him but he takes a deep breath to hold onto his temper. “Rach, I need to talk to you. It’s important.”

He’s not sure what she sees, but his honesty must shine through because her angry look changed to one of concern. She steps to the side. “Ok, come in.” He nods and walks in, immediately sitting on the couch that’s near the door. Rachel sits on the opposite end. “Alright, what do we need to talk about.”

Danny’s fingers fidget with his shirt cuffs. An old habit when he was nervous. Rachel laid a hand on his to stop the motion. “Look, the last few months, I haven’t been feeling the greatest. Steve finally forced me to see a doctor earlier this week.”

She lifted an eyebrow at that and scanned him with her eyes. “You look fine to me.”

He leaned forward, elbows braced on his knees, clasped hands on his forehead. He lets out a shaky breath. “We got the test results yesterday.” He looks at her from the side. “They’ve confirmed it was lung cancer.”

He heard her gasp. “Cancer? How? You're amazingly healthy, despite all of that junk food you eat which I still don’t see how you keep your figure.”

“My metabolism aside, it just appeared. My great aunt used to tell me that cancer doesn’t care, it will choose its time whenever it wants to. I never understood that...until now.” He sat up straight when the threat of a cough started to fill his chest. He hadn’t taken any of the medication yet. He wanted to wait until next week to start them. 

Despite their fights and disagreements, the two of them always knew when to put that aside. Rachel looked at him with worry and sympathy. She scooted closer and hugged him. He wrapped his arms around her, accepting the hug. “I’m so, so sorry, Daniel. How bad is it?”

“Stage two, which I guess is good.” He pulled away and let out a small cough, grimacing as it threatened to turn into a full on coughing fit. “I start chemo on Monday.”

“Does your family know?”

He shook his head. “Not yet. You’re the first one to know besides me and Steve. I’m calling my parents tomorrow and telling the team this weekend.” He looked at her pleadingly. “I want to tell Charlie when he gets home. He needs to know and I think he’s old enough to handle this.”

Rachel nodded. “I agree.” She glanced at her watch. “He’ll be home in about an hour. I believe Grace is between classes at the moment.”

But he was shaking his head. “No, I’m calling Gracie tonight and I’m telling Eric tonight too.” His chest ached and he finally couldn’t hold it in anymore and let loose the coughing fit that had been filling his chest. 

By the time it was over, he was exhausted, his throat and diaphragm hurt, and his eyes were watering. He slumped into the corner and was surprised when a glass was pressed into his hand. He looked at it and saw it was water. He drank a quarter of it before he looked at Rachel. “Thanks.”

“Do they know what may have caused it?” She asked once she knew he wasn’t going to keep coughing.

“Not really, though my primary suspicion could be linked to that sarin exposure nine years ago.” He thought for a moment. “I could ask my oncologist and see if they could figure it out.”

Rachel sighed and mirrored his position on the couch. She rarely ever slouched since she was raised to be very proper in everything all of the time. “I can’t believe it. I figured Steve would be in this situation, not you.”

At that, Danny let out a laugh. A true laugh that felt so good to let loose. At her confusion, he smiled as he brought his glass to his lips. “I thought the same thing.” She laughed when he said that and they waited comfortably for the first time in years for Charlie to come home.

~S~

It was a little after dinner when Danny sat down with the tablet at the kitchen table. Eric had joined them for dinner, suspicious as to why his favorite Uncle wanted him over suddenly. But he couldn’t get any answers out of the two cops. 

Now he sat beside Danny as he hit the video call to Grace. She answered almost immediately, smiling when she saw them. “Hey, Danno. Eric, long time since I saw you.”

Eric grinned. “Yeah, tell me about it, although Uncle D keeps me busy.”

“So, Danno, what’s up? It’s not your day to video call me.”

Danny suddenly felt nervous. How observant of her. He always video calls her on sundays. He could sense Steve stopping in the area he was cleaning and walk over. A hand landed on his shoulder and his thumb rubbed it in silent support. He took a deep breath.

“Both of you listen. I have to tell you something very important. Eric, I know you have noticed me not being my usual self. I have not been feeling 100% for the last few months. I finally went to the doctor earlier this week.” He risked looking at the two of them. They were watching intently, neither wanting to speak. He swallowed and like earlier, a coughing fit was threatening to take over. He cleared his throat, hoping to stall it long enough to finish speaking. “I got the test results back yesterday. They told me it was stage two lung cancer.”

Grace let out a loud gasp, her hands flying to her mouth. Eric’s eyes were comically wide and he had paled. Danny felt guilt run through him at the distressed looks from both of them. “I know it’s not the greatest news, but it seems it was caught pretty early, so I have a pretty good fighting chance.”

He could see tears running down Grace’s face and Eric had his own tears threatening to spill over. He went to comfort them, but of course, that was when the coughing fit decided to take over. He had to turn to the side and cough. A warm hand rubbed his back and he vaguely heard conversation, but he couldn’t hear it over his coughing.

A few minutes later, it ended and he sat a moment, taking the time to slow his breathing.

“Daddy? You ok?” Grace’s tear stricken voice made him close his eyes in despair. He had made his baby girl cry. Charlie had shed a few tears earlier but not much since he was still too young to know the full extent of the situation. But his daughter was more than capable of knowing.

“He’s ok, Gracie. He just needs a minute to recover.” Steve spoke for him. “I know this is devastating, but we have a treatment plan in place. He will start it Monday.” Danny focused on Steve’s warm hand as it slowly rubbed his aching back.

“I guess it would be pointless to say that I should come home.” Grace said, obviously upset.

“Yes, Gracie, you need to still attend class. That’s what your Dad would want you to do. Besides, there won’t be much you can do. We just have to take one step at a time and wait and see what happens.” Steve’s voice was gentle as he explained the situation. “The oncologist and her team are going to do everything they can to help Danno get better.”

“Ok.” There was a pause. “Danno, I want to be there.” At this Danny finally pulled himself together and sat up. He looked at Eric who had been silent, tear stains on his face. He looked at the tablet and saw Grace’s face red and puffy. Her eyes bloodshot.

“I know you do, Monkey, but like Steve said. There won’t be much you can do. Steve is going to have a hard time helping me through this as is. I’ll be ok. I’ll text you often and of course video call you every week.” She nodded her head. “I love you, Monkey. I just wanted you to know what was going on before I told the rest of the family. You know how your Grandmother gets.”

The two youngsters laughed. “She’s going to explode with denial.” Eric finally spoke up.

Danny half smiled at that. “Yes, she most definitely will.” He looked at Grace again. “If you need anything, you can always go to Newark. It’s much closer than Hawaii.”

She nodded and took a breath. “Yeah, ok. I love you, Danno.”

He smiled. “I love you more. Now go study and try to not worry about your old man.” She smiled and ended the call.

He sighed and leaned back, finally giving his attention to Eric. “How are you taking this, buddy?”

Eric swallowed. Danny knew the two of them had a special bond and this would be just as devastating to him as it was to Grace. The young man shrugged. “Ok, I guess. The good thing is I am here, so maybe I can help out and give reports to Gracie.”

Danny rolled his eyes. “Great, thanks.” Then he pulled his nephew into a tight hug. “I’m ok, alright? I’m going to fight this as much as I can.” He pulled back to look at him and smiled. “Besides, you can see me more. I’ll be officially put on desk duty until this is all over.”

Eric laughed and smiled. “Cool. Then I can definitely help out there if the team is away.”

He nodded as Steve answered. “That would be very helpful, E-train. I would appreciate that.”

~S~

It was Saturday night and everyone that was close to them was over at the house. The team, Eric, Kamekona, Flipper, Noelani, Duke, Duke’s wife and Nahele. Danny felt happy watching their Ohana enjoy themselves from his chair on the corner of the lanai. 

True to his word, Steve had taken care of everything for the evening. He had organized the food, drinks and even dessert. He had everything laid out buffet style and was walking around making sure everyone was happy.

Eric plopped down next to him and offered him a bottle of water. Danny took it and had a drink. “Thanks, buddy.”

“No problem, Uncle D. How are you feeling?” Eric looked shy to even ask such a question.

He patted his nephew’s shoulder. “I’m fine for now. Just happy to watch this.”

Steve suddenly appeared at his side holding a beer. Danny pointed at it. “I want one.” The ex-SEAL shook his head. 

“Sorry, babe, you can’t have one.”

“I’m not even on meds right now. Why can’t I have one last beer before I can’t have any for who knows how long?” Danny griped.

Steve leaned down and kissed his forehead. “Because the nice lady Doctor said it could mess you up on the first treatment. Even this far out.” He had efficiently blocked Danny’s protests and he stuck his bottom lip out in a pout.

Eric and Steve laugh at his expression. Then his partner gets serious. “When do you want to tell them? They’ve been here for about three hours now.”

Danny sighs and he feels his shoulder sag. “I was just enjoying everything.” He heaved himself up and straightened his shirt. “I guess now is as good as any.”

He looks to Eric who nods and gets up. His nephew lets out a very loud whistle that gets everyone’s attention. Danny swallows and takes a deep breath. He knows he is about to kill the good mood.

“As always, we are glad that everyone is here enjoying each other’s company.” He sees Kamekona and Flipper hold up a plate of food. “And of course the food.” That gets a chuckle out of everyone. Then his tone turned serious. “Unfortunately, there is another reason we asked everyone here tonight.” He feels Steve grab his hand in silent encouragement. “I have some news that shocked us the other day.” He takes a deep steadying breath. He already can feel the tears burning in his eyes. He blinks, trying to hold them off. “Long story short, I haven’t been feeling all that great, so I went to the doctor.” His voice starts to crack from emotion. “They have diagnosed me with stage two lung cancer.” He manages to choke out.

In an instant, the whole group started making surprised noises. Danny feels the tears he’s been trying to hold back slide down his face. Steve steps close and draws him in, hiding his face from everyone.

“Listen,” Steve takes over where he left off. “I know everyone is concerned and has many questions. The truth is, we don’t have many right now. Danny will start chemo on Monday. Yes, he will still come to work when he is able, but only at the office. Eric has volunteered to help Danny out and I’m sure Jerry will be more than happy to help when able. We know that all of you want to help, but as of right now, we are not sure how much help we will need. So, we would appreciate it if everyone just gives us encouragement for the time being. If and when we need more help we will reach out.”

Danny listens to everyone as they give their agreement. He refuses to turn around and look at his Ohana. He’s barely holding his emotions together. He takes a few deep breaths and then lifts himself up on his tiptoes until he can whisper to Steve. “I’m going to go lie down. Eric will be with me. You take care of everyone.” At Steve’s whispered agreement, his partner lets him go. Danny motions to Eric who hugs him from the side and walks with him into the house.

He can hear everyone chattering at the same time, but he forces himself to move up the stairs and into their room where he takes his shoes off and lays down. He pats the bed and holds his arm out for Eric. Most young adults would feel uncomfortable, but in their family, cuddles were common amongst each other no matter how old. Eric happily slips his flip flops off and snuggles up to his Uncle.

Danny closes his eyes and lets himself relax. “Thanks, buddy. I need this.”

“Of course, Uncle D. I’ll stay as long as you need me until Steve gets here.” Eric replies.

Danny nods and lets himself doze as he waits for everyone to leave.

~S~

Steve sighs as he watches Danny and Eric leave the lanai. He knew that the announcement would pretty much end the happy bubble that Danny had been in all evening. His heart hurt for his lover and he had a feeling that the next however many months were going to be very challenging for both of them.

The phone call to Danny’s parents had been extremely hard for them. He had to sit there and listen to Danny’s mother sob into the phone about how cruel life could be. Mr. Williams was much more together but even Steve could hear the strain in his voice. They assured them that the cancer was caught early and that they would do everything they can to fight it. They promised to keep the family updated.

He was brought back to the present when the team appeared in front of him. “How is our boy, really?” Lou asked for them.

Steve sighed as he ran a hand over his face. He was exhausted, but he had to be strong for right now. He knows he can’t do this long term but he has to for now. “Danny is understandably upset. He was shocked and in denial when we got the news, but he seems to have accepted the situation.”

“I know you said you weren’t sure, but is there anything we can do, Sir?” Junior asked, worry written heavily over his face. Steve shook his head, remembering that the young SEAL looked up to Danny as a second father. Tani did as well.

“Guys, like I said, we aren’t sure what we will need at this time. We’ll figure it out over the next few weeks once treatment is under way. Danny will still be at work when he can, so he will help with cases and any paperwork that will need to be done.”

The team agreed and after a few more minutes, they began to break up the party. Lou stayed with Steve for a moment. “Listen, brother, I know you want to be there with Danny all the time and be strong. But let’s face it, you can’t do it long term and you’re going to need to take a break. At that point, you need to let someone take over for at least a few hours if not a day for you to take care of yourself.”

Steve gave a sad smile and slapped a hand on the big man’s shoulder. “I know, but I appreciate the reminder.”

Lou nodded and then gave him a small push towards the house. “Now go to that partner of yours. We’ll clean up and leave as soon as it’s done. Our boy needs you right now.” Steve nodded, for once not arguing, and headed inside to his sick partner.


	5. Chemo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chemotherapy I think is one of the hardest therapies to go through. I personally have seen some of the symptoms that chemo can cause and it is very hard to watch. I'm sorry if this causes any tears, I know I shed a few. Hope you enjoy!
> 
> Please leave any questions, comments and kudos. Thank you to all of you. Y'all are amazing! :)

It was early on a Tuesday morning when Danny was woken up from sleep. He groaned and rolled over, wanting to sleep more. The poking and prodding continued on every part of his body, annoying him. The covers suddenly get pulled off and he growls at the person who dared do such a thing. Steve merely smiled at him. “Come on, time to get up. You have chemo this morning.”

Danny sighs in frustration and forces himself up slowly to go get ready for the day. His body is very painful today, making him not want to move much. It has been two months since this all started. His lovely blonde hair fell out at the end of the first month of chemo. Now he wears a knitted hat to cover his head. He refuses to wear a wig. 

He looks himself in the mirror and he can easily tell he has started to lose weight. His appetite comes and goes. Sometimes he eats normally and other days he only takes a few bites. The hardest thing for him was making sure he drank the required amount of water he was supposed to have every day. 

The coughing has gotten worse and he sometimes actually manages to cough up a big wad of crap. Every time it happens, it completely grosses him out.

He finishes getting dressed, already looking forward to the cot that has been placed in his office so he can rest when he needs to. The Governor is being very generous and understanding to his situation. So if he suddenly doesn’t feel well and has to take the rest of a day off, she merely says she understands and signs off on it.

Danny slips on some sweats, a t-shirt and his newark hoodie. On chemo days, he always ends up feeling cold and exhausted. No point in dressing nice if you end up sleeping most of the day. Steve gets nervous if he is at home by himself after a chemo treatment. Especially after one incident where he had a medication reaction and Danny was alone. He managed to call for an ambulance and get treatment before Steve was able to hear his message that he had sent to his SEAL during a raid.

He walks downstairs and is offered toast or eggs. He shakes his head and mentions not being hungry. Steve nods, but doesn’t argue. He merely reaches into the fridge and hands him a protein shake.

Within an hour, Danny is hooked up to his chemo in a reclining chair with a blanket covering him. Steve is sitting next to him in an uncomfortable chair reading the latest guns and ammo magazine. The ex-SEAL suddenly leans over pointing to a page in his magazine. “Look, Danno. You think I could convince the Governor to buy one of these bad boys for the task force?”

Danny forces his eyes open and glances at it. It’s a huge gun, at least four feet long and it resembled a grenade launcher. With a sigh, he closes his eyes and lets his head fall back to its previous position. “No, Steven. I’m pretty sure she will refuse that in a heartbeat. You destroy the island enough as it is.”

“Really?” He can hear the pout in his partner’s voice. Danny only nods his head as his answer.

They sit quietly for a little while and Danny has begun to doze. He’s vaguely aware that he shivers and a new weight is added at one point that is draped over him. It takes him a second to realize another blanket has been put on him. He hears Steve talking to someone quietly for a few seconds before he is quiet.

A little while later, Danny feels a tap on his covered arm, He forces one eye open to see his oncologist. Doctor Taylor smiles at him. “Good morning, Detective. How are you today?”

Danny sighs and closes his eye once more. “Doing ok as long as I don’t move.” He mumbles. 

“He’s been mostly sleeping this past weekend. Appetite is about the same and I think his body aches more this week. It’s been taking him longer to get up and move around.” Steve spoke up.

“Traitor.” Danny muttered, but just loud enough for the other two to hear him.

“Ok. I’ll look over some things. You have about 10 more minutes of chemo and then we’ll talk in my office on your progress.” She said and then he heard her retreating footsteps. 

Danny let out a sigh. Last week he had some scans taken and his oncologist was going to look them over during the week. Today they would talk about what the scans reveal. He hoped it was good news. He was getting really tired of this.

Sure enough, 10 minutes later and a nurse was unhooking him from the chemo IV. Steve folded the blankets while the nurse was working on the IV. Then Danny was being handed a bottle of water and he started drinking it slowly. He stood up slowly, feeling a little unsteady and he grabbed onto Steve’s held out arm like a lifeline. They slowly walked to Doctor Taylor’s office, not needing someone to guide them at this point.

She was sitting at her desk looking at something on her computer. Steve knocked on the door frame and her eyes shifted to them. She smiled and waved to the chair in front of her desk. A minute later, she turned her full attention to them. “Danny, how are you really feeling? Be honest.” She warned gently, she had figured out pretty quickly in the beginning that Danny would lie how he actually felt.

He thought about it. Over the last few weeks, Danny has noticed that he is having a harder time telling the difference on how he felt day to day. “I guess pretty lousy. Like Steve said, I’ve been more tired than usual. I think coughing more and that can be painful. Body aches quite often and sometimes nausea.”

She nodded and typed on her keyboard. “Thank you, Danny.” She finished her typing and folded her hands on the desk. “Ok, I think I’m going to up your pain medication to help you feel a bit more comfortable. How long are your coughing attacks?”

“About a minute or two.” 

Steve scoffs at that. “More like five minutes, buddy.”

She glances between the two for a moment, sensing some tension. “Ok, the fact that they are painful is not good. I’ll also give you some medication that will help with that. Now, onto your scans.” She turned her computer so that they could see the scans. She shows two images of Danny’s chest. The cancer mass is easily identifiable in both pictures. She points to the one on the left. “This scan was taken right before you started treatment.” She shifts to the other image. “This one is from last week. As you can see, it has grown in size, but we are fortunate that it hasn't grown much.”

“What does that mean for me?” Danny asks, feeling uneasy at the fact it has grown in size. 

“I advise coming in three consecutive days for treatment and then four days off to rest. We can do this for about a month and then we’ll take another scan and see where we stand.” she said, looking at them expectantly.

Danny looked at Steve. “What do you think?”

The ex-SEAL had his ‘constipated face’ on display. After a minute, he finally sighs and shrugs. “I think that the chemo might be a little intense for you, making you more tired. On the other hand, it might be worth trying and see if it helps. It really comes down to what you think we should do.” He said.

Danny turned back to his Doctor. “Would we use the same drug?”

“That’s a very good question, Detective.” She smiled at him. “We can stay with this one, but I think a little stronger drug might be better. We can try it this way and if it’s too much for you or makes you feel sick, we can switch back to this plan until we come up with a new one. Remember, gentlemen, there is no exact formula. Trial and error will have to be performed a little to find the right combination for you.”

He let himself slouch more into the chair, letting the piece of furniture take the weight off his aching back muscles. He turned the pros and cons of the choices over his mind. But he had to admit to himself that he couldn’t make an informative decision until he knew how each would work. He knew what he was currently doing didn’t seem to be cutting it, but the new plan could make him feel worse. He sighed. He already felt pretty lousy, mind as well try it.

“Ok...let’s try it.” He said slowly, but firmly.

She nodded. “As you wish. I’ll get everything set up for you…” She trailed off as she turned her computer back around and clicked on a few things. “Alright, starting next week, chemo will be Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. That will give you a couple of days before your son comes over to recover next weekend. I’ll switch the chemo drug to a little stronger one and I’ll check in with you on Wednesday to see how you feel.” She typed a few things real quick, her fingers flying across the keyboard. “Any questions?” The two of them shook their heads. She beamed. “Excellent. As always, call me if you do have a question. I’ll see you next week.”

The two thanked her and Steve helped Danny walk back to the car so they could head into work.


	6. Good Days, Bad Days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few snippets of good days and bad days. This was a difficult chapter to write and I hope y'all enjoying it. 
> 
> Please leave any questions, comments and kudos. Enjoy!

A couple of weeks later, Steve was digging through some paperwork in his office. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was a little before 2:00. He looked up and across to Danny’s office. The lights were still off and Steve couldn’t see anyone moving around.

As soon as they had arrived at the office after Danny’s second chemo treatment for the week, the Detective had mumbled that he was going to lie down. Steve has noticed that this more aggressive plan of treatment has been hitting Danny harder. The blonde has gotten more nauseous, lethargic and even less of an appetite. So far, his partner has been asleep for almost six hours. He was loath to wake him, but it was time for meds and he needed to make sure Danny ate some actual food.

Steve finished what he was doing then headed over to his partner's office. He quietly stepped in and smiled at Danny who had curled up on the cot, pillow snuggled to his chest. His mouth was slightly parted and soft snores could be heard. He looked closer at his eyes and could see the bruise like smudges under the closed lashes. He sighed and crouched beside his partner, laying a hand gently on a shoulder.

“Danny...Danny, time to wake up. You need to eat something.” He shook the smaller man lightly.

There was a groan and Danny buried his face into the pillow. “Five more minutes.” He mumbled.

Steve laughed. “Sorry, buddy. Come on, the sooner you take your meds and eat something, the sooner you can lie back down.” He was still trying to get Danny moving when the door opened.

Lou walked in like he owned the place and placed a bag on the desk. Only then did Steve catch a whiff of what could be potato soup and some kind of warm sandwich. Movement had Steve look back to the cot to see that Danny had lifted his head and was looking in Lou’s direction. He could smell the food as well. Then Danny groaned and flopped back down.

“Take that away.” He said while waving a hand in a shooing motion.

Steve glanced at Lou in confusion and he saw that the big man was wearing the same expression. “Danny, it’s just soup. You have to eat something.”

But Danny was shaking his head. “I don’t want to eat...Feel nauseous.” He stiffened like he was jolted with electricity. Steve watched as Danny wrapped his arms around his stomach. The ex-SEAL gently laid a hand on the back of Danny’s neck. His fingers slid over a layer of sweat and heat. He sighed and stood up. “I think you’ve got a fever again. Let me grab the meds and thermometer.” He turned to Lou. “Can you grab some water and a can of ginger ale, please?”

“Sure, not a problem.” Lou said and he started to head out.

“Wait.” Steve stopped him as he thought of something. He went to the bag and pulled out the soup. Then he offered the bag to the big man. “Take this with you.”

Lou took the bag in silence and then headed out of the office.

Steve grabbed the trash can specifically for vomit and took both items to Danny. He maneuvered until he was sitting on the edge of the couch. He placed the trashcan on the ground next to him and placed the soup on the couch. Then he carefully extracted the pillow from Danny’s arms and helped sit him up. “Come on, sweetheart, you need to at least try. Doctor Taylor said you have lost too much weight.”

The Detective moaned as the position change made his stomach flip uncomfortably. Steve opened the soup and held out a spoonful of it to Danny. The smaller man sighed and slowly took the bite. The chemo was making him not feel good and he was eating less because he was nauseous most of the time.

They waited a few minutes to see if Danny was going to bring it back up. During this time Lou returned with the two drinks and then made a hasty exit. The team silently agreed that when it came to Danny’s cancer that it was a private affair and shouldn’t be interrupted by anyone.

When it seemed that he might actually be able to keep it down, Danny ate the entire bowl and drank the ginger ale. Steve sat back talking about the case while he silently was feeling happy and relieved that the Detective was actually eating.

As soon as Danny finished, he looked like the task of eating wiped him out. Steve quickly cleaned up the trash and then he grabbed the thermometer and tylenol from Danny’s desk. He took Danny’s temperature and gave the pills for his partner to swallow. Satisfied when he only saw the one degree above normal temperature, he helped Danny lie down with blankets straightened out. “Get some rest. I’ll wake you when it’s time to go home.” Then he quietly left to head back to his office to work.

~S~

Danny was happily sipping on cranberry juice while he lounged on the lanai at home. Charlie was learning how to surf from Steve. He was amazed how much his son loved the water, just like the ex-SEAL.

It was the weekend and Danny was feeling pretty good today. He had very little sleep due to fighting off nausea most of the night. He was up and down quite often to see if he was actually going to vomit. He felt bad about it because it had woken Steve up every time he had to get out of bed.

Now he was relaxing in the warm Hawaiian sun, enjoying the warmth and watching some of his favorite people. They were planning on going out for dinner and then taking a walk while he felt good. 

Danny let out a deep breath, feeling his tired muscles relax and mold into the lounge chair. He laid his head back and closed his eyes against the bright sun. He was asleep within minutes of closing them.

~S~

Steve woke up the following Thursday morning feeling decently rested. He stretched and rolled over, reaching out to the other side of the bed. Only to discover that the other side is cold. He sat up in shock, wondering where his partner was.

He got up and looked into the master bathroom even though the light was off and looked empty. He threw a shirt on as he headed down stairs, looking in the other bedrooms on his way down. The living room was empty but there was evidence that someone had been sleeping on the couch. A couple of pillows were stacked up on one side of the couch, blankets were strewn across the cushions, a half bottle of water and a can of ginger ale sat on the coffee table.

Steve got to the bottom of the stairs and paused to listen. After several seconds, he heard a noise in the guest bathroom. He immediately walked over and opened the door to find Danny on his knees over the toilet bowl. The blonde was heaving but it seemed that nothing was coming up. He looked like he was coated in sweat and from this angle, Steve wasn’t positive if he saw tears or not.

He grabbed a washcloth off the towel rack, soaked it with cool water and knelt down next to Danny. He placed the wash cloth on the back of his neck and rubbed his back. “Hey, sweetheart, how long have you been in here?” He asked when there was a pause in between of the retching.

Danny moaned and laid his forehead on his folded arms. “I don’t know. A while.”

“When did you come downstairs?” 

“Since 2:30. Felt sick at 4:00.”

Steve looked at him sympathetically. “I’m sorry, buddy. You could have woken me. You’ve been in here for awhile. It’s about 7:45.”

Danny groaned and seemed to sag further down onto the floor. “My stomach is killing me.”

For the first time, an uneasy feeling stirred in Steve’s chest. He gently lifted Danny’s head up and placed his free hand on the Detective’s forehead. It felt warm...too warm. He thought for a moment and then made a decision. “I’m going to call your Doctor and see what they want us to do. I’ll be right back.”

Once he knew that Danny was ok where he was, he ran upstairs and grabbed his phone. He called the oncologist and explained Danny’s symptoms. After a few questions, she told him to come to the hospital so she can check him out.

Steve agreed and then hung up. He quickly dressed and grabbed some sweats and a shirt for Danny. He ran back down to the guest bathroom and helped Danny change his clothes. Then he grabbed a small bag and placed everything that could be needed into the bag in case Danny was admitted to the hospital. He grabbed his partner and carefully guided him into the passenger side of the car. Then they headed to the hospital.


	7. Hospital Stay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all of the comments so far. I'm so glad that y'all are enjoying this story so far. This is a longer chapter and I hope you enjoy it. 
> 
> As always, please leave comments, questions and kudos. Y'all are amazing! :)

They arrived at the hospital in record time. It may have helped to have emergency lights installed on the camaro and Steve may have run through a few red lights. The ex-SEAL parked the car as close to the hospital entrance as he could since Danny insisted that they park. Steve helped Danny inside and at the first unoccupied wheelchair he gently forced his partner into it.

The fact that Danny didn’t even make a single protest told Steve how weak he felt and his concern went up significantly. He pushed the chair over to the reception desk and checked Danny in, explaining that Doctor Taylor should have called ahead. Some paperwork and a phone call later, Danny was wheeled into the treatment area to get looked at.

Steve paced the waiting room, anxious to know what the results are. He thought about calling Lou but after checking the time decided it was still way too early to disturb the Captain. Better to wait until he heard some results.

An hour and a half later, a nurse appeared and escorted him to Danny. He entered the room that the Detective was temporarily in and saw that Danny was asleep. Steve walked over and gently picked up his hand. The touch made Danny open his eyes and look at him through half lidded eyelids.

“Hey, babe.” Danny muttered sleepily. Steve smiled softly and kissed his forehead.

“Hey, sweetheart. How are you feeling?”

“Crappy. I’m so tired and I hurt all over.”

Steve caressed the back of Danny’s hand with his thumb in a comforting gesture. “Get some rest until the Doc gets here.” Just as he said that, the door opened to reveal Doctor Taylor. She tapped on the tablet she held before looking up and smiling at them. 

“Good early morning, gentlemen. I have the test results here. Danny, how are you feeling right now?”

Danny struggled his eyes open and rubbed one eye with the hand that didn’t have the IV catheter in it. “Very tired and achy. Can I go home?”

She sighed. “Sorry, Danny. You have a fever and are dehydrated. The fact that you have been vomiting for several hours is quite a concern. Your body is weak from fighting the cancer and now whatever illness you have managed to catch. I think it is best to admit you for a day or two to keep an eye on you. We can use the opportunity to redo some scans while you are here.”

Danny sighed and weakly waved a hand. “Fine. Take me to your torture chamber.” He grumbled with his eyes closed.

“I’ll have a couple nurses take you up when a room is available. Get some rest and if you feel worse or feel nauseous, call a nurse and they’ll give you some medicine. Any questions?” Both men shook their heads. “Ok, I have another patient but I’ll come check on you later.” Then she left.

Steve found a chair in the corner and moved it next to the bed. He got comfortable as much as he was able and pulled his phone out. Danny glanced over and raised an eyebrow. “What are you doing?”

“Calling Lou and letting him know what’s going on. I’ll stay with you until you are settled in your room.” Steve answered as he dialed Lou’s number. The Captain picked up on the third ring and the ex-SEAL explained what was going on and that he would be coming into work late.

~S~

It was dark outside when Steve finally stood and stretched out the kinks in his body. Glancing at his watch he saw that it was 0236. He groaned quietly as he forced himself to sit back down on the reclining chair that he has been camped out in for the last eight hours.

It took a couple of hours before Danny was finally admitted into a room. When they were settled, the doctor came back and informed them that Danny had contracted the stomach flu that had been going around. So it looked like it was at least a week long stay if not two.

Steve looked at the hospital bed and watched as Danny seemed to sleep peacefully for the first time in days. He was hooked up to an IV, heart monitor and an oxygen cannula was placed under his nose. Steve sighed as he quietly brushed the tears out of his eyes. Danny couldn’t leave him. He didn’t know what he would do if Danny didn’t beat this.

Footsteps from the corridor drew him from his thoughts. Turning, he saw the night nurse, named Nicole, walking into the room. She was a very kind young woman and did her best to keep Danny comfortable. She gently and quietly checked out the still sleeping blonde. She listened to his lungs and blood pressure. She pulled out a thermometer and touched it to Danny’s forehead before noting the results. 

As she walked back around, Steve made eye contact with her and she smiled gently at him. “How’s he doing?” He whispered.

She leaned down so she was closer to his ear. “He seems to be doing ok. He still has a fever but it is coming down.”

Steve nodded and released the tension in his shoulders. He nodded and thanked her.

Nicole laid a hand on his shoulder in silent encouragement. “He’s strong and I can imagine how hard this is. But I’m sure everything will turn out fine.”

He nodded and forced a smile. Then she left. Steve let his head fall back in the chair tiredly.

“You should go home.” Danny’s sleep filled voice suddenly sounded in the room. “Get some real sleep.”

Steve looked at the bed in amazement. “You’re supposed to be asleep.”

Danny shifted until he was facing him, blinking sleepily through his blue eyes. “Hard to do that when people keep interrupting it.”

“Sorry.” 

“I’m fine, you goof. Go home.” Danny grumped as he tried to get under the blankets. Steve stood up and helped straighten the blanket and then draped a second one that was folded on the side on top of the first blanket. 

Steve leaned over and kissed him on his temple. “Danno, I don’t want you to be alone.”

A bleary glare was aimed at him. “You need a break. I’m just going to lie here and try to sleep. I’ll be boring. Go home, sleep and come back in the morning.”

He thought for a few moments before pulling his phone out. He scrolled through his contacts until he landed on the number he wanted. Then he hit call.

It was answered on the second ring. “Sir, everything ok?” Junior asked through his thick sleep voice.

“Yeah, everything is fine. Look, I know it’s crazy early but would you be willing to come up to the hospital and stay with Danny for a while?” Another blue eyed glare came his way. He easily brushed it off. 

“Of course, Sir. Just text me the room number. ETA in 15 minutes.” Then Junior hung up.

“Animal. There are plenty of nurses here. You didn’t need to disrupt someone else’s sleep.” Danny grumbled, annoyed.

Steve sighed and he gently rubbed the blanket covered shoulder. “Humor me, please. I’ll feel better if I know someone we know is here with you.” He paused a second. “I’ll feel better.”

Danny seemed to deflate at that and he sighed. “Fine. But that also means I expect you to sleep a full eight hours, swim your 50 miles, shower and EAT.” He emphasised the last order. “You have to do all of that before you come back. Got it?”

Steve was amazed at the fact that Danny was hyped up on morphine, tylenol, antibiotics and whatever other medication was shot into his system, he still managed to rant at the man half asleep. He chuckled and shook his head. “Ok, Danno. I’ll do as you command.”

“Good.” Danny said and closed his eyes. It seemed he was asleep a minute later.

The SEAL laughed quietly and sent the room number to Junior. Then sat in his uncomfortable chair to wait. 

15 minutes on the dot, Junior was walking in. He held two styrofoam cups of coffee and a bag from what looks like a convenience store. “Morning, Sir. I brought you a coffee for your drive home.” He whispered.

Steve smiled and got up. Grabbing the coffee offered to him, he took a sip of wonderfully blessed caffeine. “Thanks. Make yourself comfortable as much as you can. I have been commanded to go home for at least 12 hours. I’ll be back around lunch time. Thanks, buddy.”

Junior smiled and set the goodies on the window sill. “No problem. I’m just glad I can help.”

He paused when he heard that. “Oh yeah?”

The younger SEAL nodded. “Yeah. The team has been trying to come up with ways to help. So far we haven’t come up with anything.”

He felt bad that the team wanted to help but wasn’t sure how. After a minute, he got an idea and he smiled. “Thanks, Junior. You just gave me an idea. One I think that will cheer everyone up. I’ll tell you later. I have to go before grumpy gets on to me.”

“Then why are you still here?” Danny griped as he tried to turn over. Only he got tangled in the blankets and he huffed out a breath in frustration. Junior was quick to jump up and help. Steve smiled as he could see the younger man relaxing now that he was finally able to help.

“Love you, Danno. I’ll see you later. Try not to keep Junior up too late.” He joked as he made a hasty retreat before something was thrown at his head.

~S~

He didn’t get back to the hospital until closer to 1400. Steve surprised himself when he found he had slept a solid ten hours. But true to his word, he did everything he was supposed to do before he went back to the hospital. If he was honest, he felt refreshed and calm. He was ready for anything. 

While he was eating his late lunch, he texted the team minus Junior and Danny and asked if they would be willing to come by to clean the house. Then he suggested that they come over to bake some goodies when Danny was back home. The Detective would love it since he liked to cook or bake as a hobby.

The team replied quickly and were more than willing to jump in to help where needed. They also agreed to the get together later on. After that was squared away as much as possible, he returned to the hospital.

Steve stopped and grabbed some coco puffs on the way for Danny. Hopefully he was feeling better today. He made his way up to the cancer patient floor and waved at some of the nurses he recognized from yesterday. He walked in and almost laughed out loud. 

Danny was sitting up in bed with his head tilted at a painful angle to one side. The TV remote was in his hand, but it was obvious he had fallen asleep. Junior looked up from the book he was reading and smiled.

“Afternoon, Sir.” Junior whispered. He got up, setting his book aside and made his way to Steve’s side.

“How long has he been out?” 

Junior looked at his watch. “About two hours. Once the morning shift change happened, he didn’t get any sleep until all of his morning tests were done. This has been the most quiet in hours.”

Steve smiled and quietly set down the treats on the rolling tray that was right next to Danny. As expected, the smell of sugar and warm pastry made the blonde’s nose twitch. It was quite cute to watch as Danny processed in his sleep that a new enticing smell had entered his field of senses. 

Slowly, Danny stirred, yawned and stretched. He rubbed his neck with a groan when it was obvious that the muscles protested. Then he completely registered the pastries. His eyes narrowed in on the bag and then up at Steve. He gave him a huge, sleepy smile. 

“Hey.” He slurred.

Steve laughed and leaned over to give him a gentle kiss. “Hey, sleeping beauty. How was your sleep?”

Danny shrugged. “Ok, I guess. How was yours?”

“Surprisingly well rested. I slept ten hours straight.” 

“No way.” Danny said with a smile on his lips. “ You slept passed your normal waking hour?”

“Shut up or you won’t get the treat I brought you.”

Danny’s eyes sparkled. “Coco puffs?”

Steve shook his head. “I swear you are the only one who could identify these things by smell alone. Would you like one?”

His lover grinned and made grabby motions with his hands. Laughing, Steve happily pulled out some napkins and placed a few on it. He moved the bag by the sink and pushed the tray to be in front of Danny. The blonde took his time eating them up in a manner that Steve hadn’t seen in weeks.

“You look much better today.” He commented.

Danny nodded as he slowly chewed his first bite. “I feel better. I blame the morphine but I’ll take it as long as I can keep these down.”

Steve smiled, relief flooding through him seeing Danny acting more himself. Then he turned to Junior. “Thanks for staying, Junior. We appreciate it.”

“No problem, Sir. Like I said, it was nice to finally be able to help out.” 

“Good. Want a coco puff before you leave?” Steve offered.

The younger man shook his head. “No, thanks. Those are way too sweet for me. I’m going to head home and take a nap.”

“That’s a good idea. After that, catch up with Tani. I have something in mind for the team. I told them this morning.” Junior nodded, said his goodbye and left to go home.

“What idea, babe?” Danny asked before putting an entire pastry in his mouth.

Steve grinned as he sat back in the awful chair. “Nothing for you to worry about. I will say that you will enjoy it.”

Danny swallowed, opened his mouth to obviously argue, then snapped his jaw shut with a shake of his head. “Never mind. Not going to ask. I’ll find out eventually.”

He grinned as he grabbed the TV remote and flipped through the channels.


	8. Bed Rest And News

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny recovers from his illness in the hospital. They receive some news.
> 
> Y'all are amazing! I have one story almost ready and another one not far behind. So, keep an eye out for new stories soon. Please leave any questions, comments and kudos. Enjoy!

Danny stayed at the hospital for a week and a half before he was finally released. He stayed home for the rest of that week to finish recovering. The following week, he went back to work and tried to get back into some sort of routine. That weekend, the ohana came over and did a huge baking marathon. Danny loved it and he showed Steve how much he loved him for coming up with the idea.

Weeks went by filled with cases and different variations of chemotherapy. Danny barely noticed the days slide by as each day he felt even more lousy than the previous day. Then one morning, he could barely muster the energy to get out of bed. This made Steve highly concerned and he heard his SEAL calling the doctor. Apparently, he was instructed to bring him to the hospital. He was getting sick of that place.

After a thorough check up and a few scans later, he was instructed to go home. The worst part, he was on bed rest until further notice. Which also meant that he was officially on medical leave.

After two weeks at home, he was completely bored. He watched TV and movies, he slept a lot, he read and sometimes he just stared out of the bedroom window. Steve took the time one evening and moved the TV upstairs so that Danny didn’t have to move far.

Since Steve couldn’t afford anyone on the team to stay with him, Rachel volunteered to hang out with him. She was able to arrange to work from the house, that way she was easily available to help him. The first day he tried to not bother her and do things himself. Unfortunately, he didn’t realize how weak he was and he fell when he got up to head to the bathroom. Rachel had run in a few seconds after hearing his body hit the ground. He was fine, but his ego was severely bruised. After that, he swallowed his pride and asked for help when he needed to get up. 

Danny couldn’t believe how weak he has become. He had no strength and he knows he has lost considerable weight. He was tired all the time and he completely hated his illness. 

Steve would come home as early as possible and he would pull Danny close in the bed. He would shower Danny with love and comfort. Danny wasn’t fooled by his actions. He could tell that Steve was terrified and didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t even rant about it because he was just as terrified.

On the fifth week being on bed rest, Steve drove him back to the hospital for tests to check on the cancer. It took most of the morning to run the tests and the scans. The nice thing during these scans was that they were usually long enough for Danny to be able to doze during them.

By the time lunch came around, the results were in and they met with Doctor Taylor. As usual, she was typing away when they walked in. She quickly finished and turned her attention to them.

“Hello, Gentlemen. How are we doing today?” She asked with a smile.

Steve shrugged while trying to prop Danny up. He was so tired after being moved around so much. “Overall, hanging in there.” Steve said. Danny was glad he spoke because he couldn’t find the energy to do any kind of talking.

“Hanging in there is sometimes the best thing you can do in these situations.” She said sympathetically. “I’ll try to make this quick so you can go home and rest, Danny.” He nodded his acknowledgment and forced his eyes open so he could see the computer screen.

“Ok, so these are your last scans we took.” She said pointing at the pictures. She pressed a key and new ones appeared. “These are the ones we took this morning. Now, I have some very good news.” She said cheerfully.

“What’s that?” Steve asked, hope could be heard in his voice. 

“The cancer appears to have shrunk considerably.” She grinned.

Danny blinked as he stared at the images. Sure enough, the spot where the cancer was located was now shown to be half the size it was the last time.

“That’s amazing.” Steve replied, voice cracking slightly. Danny felt the SEAL hug him with an arm. “Isn’t this great, Danny?”

He nodded. “Yeah, I’m speechless.” he managed to say. His heart was pounding in excitement at hearing such good news. Maybe he was finally seeing the end of the tunnel.

After a few minutes of happy chatter, Steve finally brought them back to focus. “So, what’s the next step?”

Taylor turned the screen back around and clicked on a few things that they couldn’t see. “The next step will be for me to consult with one of our surgeons. See what he thinks about getting this thing removed. In the meantime, let’s stick with the current chemo regimen until I hear something from the surgeon.” She looked at Danny with a smile. “I know it’s been hard, but you are doing great, Danny. Just keep fighting for me and we’ll get you fixed up, ok?”

Danny nodded before stifling a yawn. He tried not to, but he couldn’t help it. He was so tired.

“Ok, so I’ll see you two next Monday and hopefully I’ll have some more information for you guys.” She said. 

Steve stood, taking it as their cue to leave. “Sounds good. Thanks, Doc. Come on, Danny. Let’s get you home and into bed.” The SEAL said as he helped Danny stand. Danny grabbed one of his arms to help steady himself as they slowly walked back to the car to head home. 

~S~

That night, Danny was resting in bed after a long day. He felt beyond exhausted, but his mind was buzzing with all of the new information that he received that day. The cancer was finally shrinking and he was elated at that. That also meant the beginning of talking about surgery. That scared him the most at the moment.

A knock on his door made him roll over, wondering who it could be. “Come in.” He quietly called. The door opened and revealed Rachel. “Rach, what are you doing here?”

She smiled gently and closed the door behind her. She walked over and sat on the bed near him. “I was coming to check on you. You’ve been quiet all evening.”

He sighed and pulled the blanket tighter against himself, shivering from a chill. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just tired.”

She nodded in thought. “Thinking mostly, right?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, you know me too well.” He paused for a few moments. “Did you ever think something like this could happen to us?”

“No. It’s never crossed my mind.” Rachel sighed and laid down next to him. She gently brushed some loose hair from his face, just like she used to do when they were happily married. “I’m just glad you’re doing much better.”

“Yeah, me too.”

There was an awkward pause where Rachel seemed to study him like a specimen under a microscope. He shifted uncomfortably from that gaze.

“What else is bothering you?” She finally asked quietly,

He sighed, annoyed that she could read him so well. “The surgery that could be happening sometime in the near future.” He admitted.

“Surgery?”

“Yeah, Doctor Taylor is asking one of the surgeons when would be the best time to go in and apparently take it out.”

She nodded, her thinking face on display. “I see. And you’re silently starting to freak out about it?”

He let out a borderline hysterical laugh. “How do you do that? It’s creepy.”

Rachel grinned and leaned over to give a peck to his cheek. “Because I just know you so well, Daniel.” She fixed the bunched up blanket around him before standing. “Try not to worry like you usually do. Everything is going to be fine. Now get some sleep. I seem to recall our daughter saying she was wanting to come visit.” She smirked before leaving the room.

Danny shook his head but had a small smile touching his lips. He snuggled deeper into the blankets and allowed himself to drift off into sleep.


	9. Surgery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny goes into surgery. Steve looks for comfort from the ohana.
> 
> Sorry for the late update. Had internet problems and got super busy. Anyway, on to the chapter. Please leave any comments, questions and kudos. Y'all are the best. Enjoy!

It was another month before the topic of surgery was brought up again. During that time, Grace flew home to spend some time with Danny, which gave Rachel and Steve a small reprieve from helping Danny.

Danny was captivated by Grace’s stories from College and told him everything that she could think of. She brought some items with her from North Carolina, mainly for Charlie who absolutely loved his baseball hat and action figure of Captain America the most. She had bought a new beanie hat for Danny with the Jets logo in the front. He immediately replaced his old one with it and grinned at Steve’s disgust at the team.

A few days during Grace’s visit, Danny felt well enough to venture out of the house. Steve and Grace took advantage of the situation and went to as many places as they could while Danny had the energy. Charlie sometimes came along on their outings and Steve was relieved how happy Danny was being outside. They went to the beach, the zoo, even an art museum or two. Danny loved it and that made Steve extremely happy.

Of course, they had to stop at Kamekona’s shrimp truck and the big Hawaiian happily announced that Danny’s food was on the house. Grace and Charlie’s lunch was half off while Steve only got five percent. The SEAL knew better than to argue on it.

Then Grace had to fly back to North Carolina to return to school. She was very emotional but she left with a small smile on her face and some new pictures on her phone.

A few days after she left, Danny started feeling all of the run around they have been doing. He ended up being bed ridden for almost a week. Steve was worried, but he was ranted at until he went to work like he was supposed to. Rachel reassured him that Danny wouldn’t be alone and that she would call if an emergency came up. It soothed him a little, but not much.

Several cases had been waiting for him when he returned and he immediately dived in wanting to keep his mind busy. He was pretty sure he wasn’t doing a very good job and it was confirmed when one suspect managed to hit him several times in the face before Steve took him down. Danny yelled at him about distractions that night when the blonde saw the forming bruises.

Then more worry popped into Steve’s mind when they went in for Danny’s chemo and met up with Doctor Taylor. More scans had been taken and she was very pleased at what she saw.

“Time for surgery, I think.” She had said in a cheerful voice. Steve felt his breath hitch at that and he felt Danny tense beside him where he was holding the Detective.

“Is it small enough for that?” Steve had hesitantly asked. He didn’t wait for Danny to respond. He was used to doing most of the talking if it was a chemo day. Danny was always much too tired to talk much after having his chemo done.

“Yes. The surgeon I have been in contact with agrees that now would be the perfect time. Danny, you haven’t been admitted to the hospital for a while and you’ve been feeling well enough to venture out. With this in mind, we think you are strong enough to undergo some surgery and hopefully we can remove this mass once and for all. What do you say?”

Steve squeezed Danny gently where his arm wrapped around his shoulders to elicit a response. The smaller man lifted his head slightly and nodded. “Um, yeah. If that seems to be the best course of action.”

Doctor Taylor frowned at that response. “Danny, this is your health and your body. You tell me what you would like to do. I think surgery would help you get better and back to normal life faster, but this is still your decision. You don’t have to do surgery and we can continue just doing the chemo.” She said quietly.

He looked at his partner, worry and curiosity peaked his interest for Danny’s answer.

Danny bit his lip in thought for a minute before sighing. “I guess surgery would be best. Would it be ok if I thought about it?”

“Of course. This isn’t to be taken lightly, but I think it will have the best chance. Take your time and just call me when you decide. In the meantime, we’ll keep everything as is and go from there. Ok?” 

“Yeah, ok.” Danny muttered before laying his head back against Steve’s shoulder.

They head home and talk about it all evening when Steve gets home from work.

The next day, Danny calls Doctor Taylor and says he will do it. She gives him some encouragement and says she will get everything set up. 

Six weeks later, it was time for Danny to go under the knife.

~S~

Steve takes Danny to the hospital early the morning of the surgery. He has packed a small bag for the time that Danny will be spending in the hospital. Due to how much weight he has lost and the fact he will be weak from the surgery, Danny will be admitted for about two weeks while he recovers.

They were both extremely nervous and they tried everything to not let it overwhelm them. They checked in and they were taken to the room that Danny will be staying in after surgery. Steve got Danny comfortable in the chair near the window and then he focused on unpacking the small bag.

Steve’s phone rang just as he finished putting away the bag. He glanced at the caller ID and saw Lou’s name. He answered it. “McGarrett.”

“Good morning, sunshine.” The big man’s jovial voice said with laughter.

“Hey, Lou, what’s up?” He asked as he sat on the window sill near Danny. The blonde tiredly laid his head on Steve’s thigh, obviously seeking comfort. Steve gently ran his fingers over Danny’s beanie in a comforting gesture.

“Well, the team was wanting to know if you guys want us to come up and see you two before Danny goes into surgery?”

Steve let out a quiet breath. “Hold on.” He pulled the phone away and covered the mic with his shoulder. “Hey, sweetheart, the team wants to know if you want to see them before you are put under.”

Danny laid there quietly for a few moments and then shook his head. He put the phone back to his ear. “Sorry, Lou, but I think it will be too much. Why don’t all of you come by this afternoon. That should be plenty of time to get things rolling here.”

“Sure, we can do that. Let us know when our boy goes into surgery.”

“Will do. Thanks, Lou.”

“Any time, brother.” Then the line clicked, indicating the call had ended.

Steve put his phone back in his pocket while continuing his loving caress. They stayed in that position until a nurse came in saying it was time to get ready.

The SEAL helped Danny into his hospital gown and get comfortable in the bed. By now, Danny was picking at threads in the blanket and twisting the fabric between his fingers. Steve gently placed his hand on top of his. “It’s going to be ok, Danno.”

“I know, but it’s surgery. It always scares me.” Danny admitted. 

Steve smiled and placed a hand on the back of Danny’s neck, slowly massaging the sides with his fingers. “I know. I’m nervous too, but the doctors have been doing this for a long time. They know what they are doing and they have been studying the area they will be in. It’s going to be fine.”

Danny nodded and then looked at him sheepishly. “Would you mind cuddling with me until they put me to sleep?”

He grinned and in answer, he got onto the bed until he was holding Danny against his chest. He dropped a kiss on top of Danny’s head. “I’ll hold you until I’m forced away from you.” He quietly jokes.

They sat there in contented silence until the Surgeon walked in followed by the anesthesiologist. “Good morning, gentlemen.” She said as she read the medical file. She looked up and held her hand out. “I’m Doctor Lilly Martinez.” They shook her hand. “I’ll be your surgeon today. I understand that I will be removing a mass from your right lung. Is this correct?”

Danny nodded. “Yes, Ma’am. This won’t take long will it?”

She looked at him directly, placing the file on the foot of the bed. “I’m sure Doctor Taylor explained, but this surgery will take some time. It is a very delicate surgery due to its location. But rest assured, I’ve done lots of surgeries like this, some much more delicate and complicated. Please be assured that yours is straight forward. I don’t expect to have any problems.” She smiled gently at Danny. “For you, it will be very quick. You’ll fall asleep and then it will be over by the time you wake up. It will be fine, ok?”

Steve instantly liked her. She was professional, straight forward but compassionate. Even though she appeared young for a Doctor, she had an aura of confidence and comfortable in her profession. 

“Ok.” Danny said. Steve hugged him in comfort, knowing that Danny was still extremely nervous despite the Doctor’s words.

“Alright, do you have any other questions?” They both shook their heads. “Very good. Ok, this is James. He’ll start hooking you up with the anesthesia and I’ll see you in a little bit in the OR.” Then she left.

James was a very well built, dark skinned man, but he was very gentle and made lots of jokes while getting everything set up. By the time he had the IV in and putting in the medication, Danny was smiling at some of the puns James had said.

All too soon, Danny was completely asleep and Steve was extracting himself from the blonde. A nurse came in and switched the beanie out for a surgery cap. Steve took the beanie and tucked it into one of his pockets while the other two wheeled the bed out of the room and towards the surgery suite.

Steve grabbed the things he needed then headed to the surgery waiting room. He found a spot and got as comfortable as he could. He glanced at his watch and saw it was 0900. He sighed and stretched his long legs out in front of him. It was going to be a long six hours.

~S~

Just a little before 1300, Steve heard the team enter the room, forcing him out of the stupor he had fallen into. He stretched out his stiff limbs and stood to greet them.

“Hey, guys. You’re early.” He said.

“Yeah, the kids were starting to get a little anxious.” Lou said with a soft smile.

They grabbed nearby chairs and formed a diformed circle. “Have you heard anything?” Tani asked, worry filled her brown eyes.

Steve shook his head. “Last thing I heard was that surgery was going well and they were starting to take out the mass. But that was a couple of hours ago.”

“How was Danny this morning, Sir?” Junior asked from where he was sitting next to Tani.   
‘  
The older SEAL took a calming breath while trying to shake the drowsiness off. Why did hospitals make people very drowsy?’ He thought wearily. “Danny this morning was pretty nervous and his anxiety was pretty high, but he kept it together pretty well.” He left out the part where he could tell that Danny was scared. That was something that the team really didn’t need to know.

The team sat down while Steve took the opportunity to walk around. He felt his stiff limbs start to loosen up the more he moved. He had been sitting for far too long. He also took the time to catch up on the current case with the team since he took the last two days off. 

A little over an hour later, Doctor Martinez appeared and she pulled Steve aside to a quiet corner to talk to him.

“How is Danny?” He asked, impatiently.

She gave a small smile. “Relax, Danny is fine. He is very strong and made it through well. I will admit that there was a few minutes of worry when his blood pressure and oxygen levels dropped, but he recovered quickly. Other than that, he came out of it better than I had expected.”

“What about the cancer?” 

“Removed. I got the mass and cleaned out the surrounding area for any other clusters that might have been lingering. I’m confident I got it all, but we’ll have to wait about a month before we can be completely certain.”

Steve sighed with relief even though a tiny bit of worry lingered. For now, he would have to be happy with the fact that Danny was going to be fine. “When can I see him?”

“In a couple of hours. He is resting in recovery right now. He’ll be moved when he seems to be in the clear and once he’s settled, I’ll have a nurse come get you. I’m going to keep him under for the rest of the day and let him wake up tomorrow. This will give his body a chance to rest after a stressful surgery.” The Doctor smiled gently at his concern.

He nodded and shook her hand. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure. I’ll check on him later before I head home.” Then she left.

Steve returned to the team who were eager to hear some news. “First thing to know is that Danny came out of surgery just fine. He’s in recovery now and will be moved to his room in a couple of hours. I guess you guys can see him, but they are keeping him under for the rest of the day. He should be awake by tomorrow night.”

The team cheered softly, mindful of the other families in the room. Lou slapped a hand against Steve’s shoulder. “What did I tell ya? Our boy was going to be just fine.”

Steve smiled and nodded. “Yes, that you did.” 

The group hung out for a few hours. At one point, someone went and got coffee for everyone. Steve took his happily, needing the caffeine boosts to wake him up. Since the adrenaline was tapering off, exhaustion was starting to creep into his muscles and making his eyes heavy.

Finally, the nurse came and informed them that they could see Danny. She led the team to the room that they had started their day in. As promised, Danny was settled on his bed, hooked up to several machines. Steve immediately notice the bag hanging on the side of the bed, indicating a catheter had been placed. He grimaced, knowing that once Danny felt better, he was going to be cursing up a storm about it.

Then he noticed the other equipment. The standard IV drip, oxygen cannula, oxygen meter, blood pressure cough and heart monitor were present. The chest tubes snaking out from under the blankets and over the side of the bed made Steve slightly concerned even though he knew they would be necessary.

He watched as each team member approached the bed and gave some encouragement to Danny while he slept on, oblivious to what was going on. All too soon, Steve was the only left in the room. He barely acknowledged Lou’s comment about grabbing dinner and bringing back up to him. All he could see was his small partner in the bed. Quiet and chillingly still.

Steve pulled the uncomfortable hospital chair closer and got comfortable. He would stay in this spot until Danny himself banned him from the room.

~S~

The sound around him was uncomfortably loud. That was the first thing he noticed as awareness returned to his conscious mind. There were multiple people near him and they were talking way too loud, In his foggy, sluggish mind, he couldn’t tell who the voices belonged to.

He groaned when a giggle started to make his head throb. Then he heard someone making a shushing sound. The room became quieter followed by the gentle feel of a hand gently petting his head. It felt calming and sent warmth through his body.

“Hey, Danny. You with me, sweetheart?” Steve’s deep voice asked quietly near his ear.

Danny opened his mouth to answer, but his throat was extremely dry and he coughed instead. He felt an arm snake under his shoulders to help lift him up a little bit. Something tapped his lips.

“Here, buddy, drink some water.” Steve said.

He opened his mouth and found a straw passing through his lips. He gratefully drank the cool water, relieving the dryness. He was disappointed when it was taken away all too soon. He embarrassingly let out a small whimper.

Steve chuckled. “Sorry, buddy, but if you drink too much you will get sick.” There was a pause and Danny heard the water cup being placed down. “Can you open your eyes? It’s a little bright but not too bad in here.”

Danny really wanted to go back to sleep, but he could sense the impatient energy that his partner was projecting. He took a deep breath and forced his heavy eyelids open. Finally, he managed to open them. His vision was blurry but after a few seconds it became sharp clarity. 

It had to be close to evening by the way the sun streamed in through the window. There was an orangish glow around the room that made the room more homey than the clinical stark white of a typical hospital room. He looked around and his eyes connected with Steve who was sitting next to him. The SEAL smiled and gently caressed his cheek. “There you are. How are you feeling?”

He could sense other people in the room, but he ignored them for now. “Lousy...and drunk." He slurred. Steve and several other people laughed at his comment.

"That would be because you are filled to the gills with pain meds." Steve replied.

Danny squinted at him, already feeling sleep creeping up on him. "The good stuff?"

Steve smiled and gently caressed his arm that was free of tubing. "Absolutely. Morphine all the way." He leaned over and gave a loving kiss to his temple. “You’ve been asleep for a little over a day.”

“A day?” He whispered in disbelief.

“Yeah, sweetheart. The Doctor said it was better that you slept longer. This gave your body a chance to heal and recover from the surgery.” Steve held up a hand to stave off Danny’s question. “The Doc said the surgery went well. They are pretty sure that they got it all out. In a few weeks, your lung should heal well enough for you to notice the difference.” 

Danny wanted to ask more questions but his eyes were burning from exhaustion. They slowly closed of their own accord, no matter how hard he tried to keep them open. A gentle kiss was placed on his cheek.

“Go to sleep, Danny. Some very special people would like to see you later. I’ll be here when you wake.” Steve whispered softly. Danny relaxed at the promise and drifted back to sleep.


	10. Beginning Of The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the final chapter. This was a short story and I enjoyed writing this. Like I said in chapter 1, this was in honor of everyone who is currently fighting, has won, or anyone who has lost their battle against cancer. I hope this story shows a small glimpse into the difficult fight. 
> 
> On a happier note, multiple stories are in the works and get them up soon. Keep an eye out for the new stories. 
> 
> Y'all are amazing and look forward to hear all of your comments, questions and kudos. See y'all in the next story. Enjoy the conclusion! :)

The rest of Danny’s stay in the hospital was mostly uneventful. Charlie, Grace and Eric came by on the weekends which perked Danny right up when he saw them. They never stayed long since he became exhausted very easily, but it was soothing to Danny’s soul to see them.

At the end of his third week in the hospital, he was allowed to go home with strict instructions to be on bedrest. Steve helped him out onto the lanai every morning to catch some sun while the SEAL went and did his swim in the ocean. He would nap in the warm rays until Steve returned from his exercise.

A month after he was released from the hospital, Steve felt comfortable enough to go back to work for a full day. He had been taking half days so he could be home in the afternoon when Danny started to get tired. Eventually, Danny got tired of all of the hovering and mother henning that he practically pushed the taller man out the door.

Every week he felt himself getting stronger and only had to do a few more chemo treatments which weren’t as aggressive as they had been early on. He was able to go out more and even spent an entire day shopping with Rachel. This gave them a chance to reconnect and smooth over more of the rough edges of their relationship now that they were much more civil to each other.

Several days previous, he had come by to the hospital to get some new scans and tests done to be analyzed. The last few days had gone by torturously slow.

Now it was the day that they would find out if the surgery was successful. Two and a half months has passed, but Danny was extremely nervous and his anxiety levels high. Steve picked up on his energy and surprised Danny by making sweet love with him. They dozed for an hour after that and then they cleaned up followed by lunch before heading to the hospital. 

Now they were sitting in Doctor Taylor’s office, waiting for the verdict.

Danny picked up one of the free pens from the desk and fiddled with it nervously. He shifted in his chair for the upteenth time since they sat down.

Steve sighed and grabbed Danny’s hands to still them. “Would you please relax?”

“I’m trying to.” He snapped, his defenses automatically going up.

He held up his hands in a sign of peace. “Ok, I’m sorry. Just try to relax, ok? Getting all worked up right now can’t be good for your health right now.”

Danny let out a slow breath, angry with himself. Steve was only trying to help and he just bit his head off. “No, I’m sorry. I’m just...you know.” He said while gesturing with his hands.

Steve nodded. “Yeah, I know.”

Before Danny could say anything else, Doctor Taylor came in with an armful of files. “I’m so sorry to keep you gentlemen for waiting. I just finished a staff meeting and I know you guys are anxious to know some results.” She said quickly while dropping her files and sitting down. She typed onto the keyboard for a minute.

Danny forced himself to hold still while he waited impatiently. She smiled at them apologetically. “Again, I’m sorry. I promise I will tell you the results in just a minute.”

A few more seconds and she finally turned her attention to them. “I’ve looked over all of the scans and blood tests very carefully.” She started and the anxiety that had settled in the pit of his stomach intensified. He felt nauseous just waiting for the results. His heart pounded so hard he wasn’t sure he would be able to hear anything.

The Doctor smiled and her eyes were shining brightly. “Congratulations. You are in remission. There doesn’t seem to be any signs of cancer.”

Danny was suddenly slammed with equal amounts of relief and excitement. He felt himself start to shake slightly and tears were streaming down his cheeks before he could even stop them. He couldn’t help himself and he leaned over with his elbows on his knees. He let himself cry feeling happy and exhausted at the same time.

He felt Steve’s arms wrap around his shoulders and pulled him until he was being hugged against the SEAL’s muscular chest. Danny automatically latched onto Steve and held on tightly as he was hit with waves of a multitude of emotions.

“Thank you, Doctor.” He heard Steve say.

“Of course. To be honest, I love these moments. I’m so happy for the both of you.” Doctor Taylor said with fondness in her tone. “I have to tell you both that there is still some recovery ahead. Danny needs to rebuild his endurance and strength along with gaining some weight. Plenty of rest combined with exercise will be best. Now that chemotherapy is over, appetite should come back and his hair should regrow over the next few months.”

“Ok, all of that is doable.” Steve said. Danny just let him talk because he was way too overwhelmed right now to even attempt to make a single sentence.

“Great. I think now would be the perfect time to head home and rest up. Enjoy the day and celebrate.” She suggested.

“Again, thank you.” Steve said before pulling Danny up as he stood. Danny clung to the brunette as they slowly made their way out of the office and headed home.

~S~

The sun was setting when Steve finally was able to sit down out on the lanai and relax. As soon as they got home, Steve held Danny close in their bed while the smaller man cried into his chest.

Steve understood that the tears were of joy and the fear that had been bottled up for all of these months. It took all afternoon before Danny fell asleep from emotional exhaustion. Steve stayed with him a little while longer before he silently got off the bed, pulled the covers over Danny, and snuck out of the bedroom. He had immediately grabbed a longboard from the fridge on his way to the lanai.

Now he was finally alone and he let his own emotions roll over him. He felt overjoyed and felt relieved that this long rollercoaster ride was almost over. He couldn’t wait for everything to go back to normal. He missed having Danny by his side at work, being able to go out for longer than a couple of hours and be able to enjoy being on a date.

“Knock, knock.” Lou’s voice made him jump and he turned to see the big man walking out onto the lanai. Lou scrutinized him for a minute before sighing and sitting down. “Brother, you look completely exhausted.”

Steve nodded his agreement. “I am, but Danny is worse off than I am.”

“Where is our boy?” 

“Upstairs asleep. He deserves it after all of these months.”

Lou nodded. “I agree. I came over to check on you two. I know Danny had his Doctor appointment this morning. What was the verdict?”

Steve rolled his head to the side so he could look at Lou and smiled. “It was the best news we could have hoped for. Danny is in remission.”

The big man let out a shaky breath and his eyes looked suspiciously shiny. “Oh thank the Lord. That’s great to hear.”

“Yeah. Spent all afternoon processing that news and Danny went to sleep utterly exhausted.”

Lou nodded as he looked out to the ocean. “I imagine so. The poor guy has been terrified during his entire treatment. Cancer is terrifying when it’s your own health.”

Steve nodded his agreement and closed his eyes. “You know, Lou, I can only imagine what he went through. I always thought I would have been the one fighting cancer and Danny taking care of me. Being on this side has been a very humbling experience.”

He could feel how surprised Lou was when he admitted how he felt. He rarely ever shared his feelings, but he was emotionally drained and his guard is down.

“I suppose the good thing out of this is that you were there for Danny the entire way.”

“Yeah but there is a lot of recovery to do for Danny. I’m just ready for him to be well and get everything back normal.”

“I know how you feel, man, but Danny can only recover so fast. This is the part that he will need you the most. Make sure he doesn’t push too hard or go too slow. Help him when he gets frustrated or discouraged.” Lou wisely advised.

Steve couldn’t find anything to say to that so he merely agreed silently.

They sat together in comfortable silence for some time. The sun has long set by the time Lou stands up to stretch when he notices that Steve had fallen asleep at one point. He was tempted to leave the Commander where he was but Lou wanted to head home and it wouldn’t be safe for Steve to be out here while he slept the sleep of the exhausted.

Lou gently shook Steve’s shoulder and the other man blearily looked up at him. “Got to bed, Steve. I’m heading home and you don’t need to be out here. Go to Danny and both of you sleep well.”

Steve nodded and slowly stood up. He walked Lou to the door and said good night to the Chicago native. He locked up the house before running upstairs and got ready for bed. He crawled into bed behind Danny who was still sound asleep. He pulled the smaller man into his arms and twined their legs together. He nuzzled against Danny’s neck and quickly fell asleep, dreaming of what life will look like now that Danny was better.

~S~

Today was the day Danny was looking forward to. After three grueling months of exercise, strength training, and gaining back the lost weight, he was finally ready to get back to work. His hair started to regrow finally, but it was still very short. So he still wore his beanie to cover it. He wasn’t going into the field yet and he still got chills off and on.

He still tired easily and Steve agreed that he should only work half days until he got stronger. But he didn’t care, he was just glad to finally return to work after so long being laid up.

Danny takes his place in the camaro as Steve starts it up. Steve looks at him with the goofy grin that makes Danny fall in love with him every time. “What has you all sappy this morning?”

“I got you back where you belong.” The SEAL proclaimed.

“Goof.” Danny said but a smile was also on his face. 

They drove to Lolani Palace in comfortable, happy silence. As they got out and headed inside, Danny felt what could only be described as first day jitters and he took several deep breaths to calm it down a little. Before he knew it, they were passing through the glass doors that was the boundary of the 5-0 offices.

Lou, Tani and Junior were standing around the computer table, looking at something on the display. At the sound of the door opening, all three turned to see who came in. As soon as Danny walked in, Tani gave out a happy squeal and launched herself at him to give him a tight hug. 

“I’m so glad you’re here. It’s been way to crazy without you reigning everything in.” She said into his ear.

“Hey! I haven’t been that bad.” Steve protested.

Lou laughed and slapped a hand on Steve’s shoulder. “I’m with Tani on this. I don’t know how Danny puts up with you in the field.”

“I have the patients of a saint.” Danny snarked. Steve glared at him. 

“Welcome back, sir.” Junior said, much more reserved than Tani was being. Danny sighed and opened his arms.

“Come on, your turn for a hug.” He waited, knowing that the young SEAL was a lot like Steve when it came to public displays of affection. He merely waited until Junior sighed and gave in. 

Lou gave a handshake instead of a hug. Much too manly for such things as a hug. “Good to have you back, brother. Just do me a favor and be sure to take this one with you when you leave for the day.” He joked while gesturing to Steve.

Danny grinned. “I’ll do my best.” He said while ignoring the older SEAL who was protesting against such things.

“What do you guys got?” Steve finally switched to Commander mode and took charge once again.

Junior motioned to the table. “A triple homicide. Almost looked like a robbery gone wrong, except one of the victims is a Senator here on vacation.”

Danny moved with the group to the table with everyone to go over the case. He moved his eyes over the team and couldn’t help but let a fond smile cross his face. If it wasn’t for their ohana, he and Steve would have had a very rough year. He would forever be thankful to them and the good fortune for once that he managed to recover mostly whole once more. He would never to anything for granted ever again. Life was too precious and too fleeting.

He made a promise at that moment to try to enjoy every single moment. The future can worry about itself for once.


End file.
